University of Alberta Blended Learning Symposium
Date: December 5, 2013 - 9:30am to 3:00pm
Location: Edmonton Clinic Health Academy (ECHA) Lower Level L1-490, University of Alberta. (Registration from 9-9:45 AM)
On December 5, 2013, the University of Alberta Provostial Digital Learning Committee in conjunction with the Centre for Teaching and Learning, will host a symposium to engage participants in a conversation about supporting learning and the undergraduate student experience at the University of Alberta using blended learning strategies. (Teaching a blended learning course involves delivering a portion of instruction in an online environment.) We invite all members of the university community to attend and to find out more about the role blended learning is currently playing in the lives of undergraduate students on our campus and possibilities for the future. The day will feature:
- A keynote address from Dr. Ron Owston (http://www.yorku.ca/rowston/), Dean of the Faculty of Education at York University and a leading researcher in blended learning;
- A showcase, featuring an in depth look at four blended undergraduate courses from the University of Alberta Phase I Blended Learning Initiative; and
- A panel discussion on blended learning and the possibilities and challenges it presents for the future of post-secondary education.
Be sure to bring a digital device or laptop to this event; the day will be interactive and we encourage your active participation.
Resources for the Event
Public Moodle course http://tinyurl.com/uofablended
Schedule of Events
| Time | Session | Speaker | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9:00 - 9:45 | Registration & Breakfast Outside of ECHA L1 - 490 |
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| 9:45 - 10:00 | Welcome & Opening Remarks ECHA L1 - 490 |
Gord Johnston, Assistant Deputy Minister, Advanced Learning and Community Partnerships Dr. Martin Ferguson-Pell Dr. Sheree Kwong See Dr. Sarah Forgie |
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| 10:00 - 10:50 | Keynote: Blending to Learn, Learning to Blend ECHA L1 - 490 http://new.livestream.com/ualberta/blendedlearning |
Dr. Ron Owston, York University | ||
| 11:00 - 11:30 Concurrent sessions repeated again 11:30 - 12:00 |
Blended Learning Showcase (Examples of blended learning courses) Sessions will not be livestreamed but will available via the public Moodle course following the sessions. |
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| EDPY 301 - Inclusive Education: Adapting Instruction for Students with Special Needs ECHA L1 - 230 |
Tatum Doris, Dr. Denyse Hayward, Holly Whyte, Corbett Artym, Diane Padlesky Therrien, Education Faculty | |||
| EDSE 307 - Language, Literacy and Society in Educational Contexts ECHA 1 - 190 |
Dr. Bill Dunn, Education Faculty | |||
| EDEL 325 - Curriculum and Pedagogy in Elementary School Music ECHA L1 - 150 |
Dr. Amanda Montgomery, Carol Tonhauser, Connie Yuen, Education Faculty | |||
| EDU 210 - Introduction to Educational Technology ECHA L1 - 140 |
Dr. Janet Welch, Anwen Burk, Belina Caissie, Luis Fernando, Sherri Fricker, Carol Tonhauser, Education Faculty | |||
| 12:00 - 13:00 | Blended Bites Lunch Attendees are invited to sample bites of food and ideas by visiting tables for short presentations of other examples of blended learning. ECHA Lower Level Quiet Study Area |
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| 13:00 - 14:00 | Interactive Discussion: The Future of Blended Learning in Post-Secondary ECHA L1 - 490 http://new.livestream.com/ualberta/blendedlearning |
Dr. Martha Cleveland-Innes, Athabasca University Dr. Amanda Montgomery, University of Alberta Dr. Ron Owston, York University Corbett Artym, Graduate Student, University of Alberta |
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| 14:00 - 15:00 | Blended Learning Award: Information Session ECHA L1 - 490 http://new.livestream.com/ualberta/blendedlearning |
Dr. Mike Carbonaro Dr. Sarah Forgie |
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Keynote Speaker
Dr. Ron Owston, "Blending to Learn, Learning to Blend"
Dr. Ron Owston is University Professor of Education and Dean of the Faculty of Education at York University. Before taking the position of Dean last year he was founding director of York's Institute for Research on Learning Technologies.
He is a pioneer in the use of technology in teaching, having taught undergraduate, graduate, and continuing education courses with and about technology since the early days of the web in the mid-1990s. In his courses, Dr. Owston has experimented with video conferencing, synchronous and asynchronous discussion tools, taught collaborative online courses with other universities, and incorporated into his teaching social media tools such as wikis, Twitter, and YouTube. One of the courses that he teaches includes online mentoring of pre-service teachers by experienced classroom teachers to help the beginning teachers use technology effectively; while another blends face-to-face classes with web conferencing at the graduate level.
Dr. Owston has spoken at numerous national and international conferences and has published extensively on teaching and learning with technology in leading journals. This year he was lead editor of a special issue of the journal Internet and Higher Education which addressed policy and implementation of blended learning. He has three research projects currently underway: one in which he is evaluating the efficacy of blended learning in university undergraduate classes, the second is examining telepresence to connect schools in northern communities with the south, while in the third he is studying the accessibility of websites for persons with disabilities. Dr. Owston's website is at http://ronowston.ca.
Watch the livestream:https://livestream.com/ualberta/blendedlearning